Dental Health Risks of Methylmercury Exposure

If you are suffering from cavities, one way of salvaging what’s left of your natural tooth is by using dental fillings. This procedure consists of removing the infected area and filling the empty space with a material that maintains the structural integrity of the damaged tooth.

Why opt for dental fillings? The procedure can take as little as one hour and the product usually lasts more than five years, depending on how you take care of it. Apart from these, certain materials, such as tooth-coloured resins give a natural appearance to the damaged tooth, making it look good as new.

Prolonged Exposure to Mercury

Before people used tooth-coloured resins, dental surface restorations usually involved dental amalgam. Still used to this day, this is a mixture of metals, such as mercury, tin and silver, to name a few. However, in a study conducted by researchers from the University of Georgia, findings revealed that these metals significantly contribute to the body’s prolonged mercury levels.

They share that dental amalgam was the material of choice for dental fillings for more than a century because it was both durable and affordable. However, exposure to high levels may put the patient at risk of damaging his or her immune system, kidney, heart, brain, and lungs.

Methylmercury Exposure

In relation to dental fillings, toxicologists found an increase in the levels of methylmercury, mercury’s most toxic form. Having more than eight tooth fillings boosts the patient’s chances of suffering from organ damage.

Good oral health practices, such as brushing and flossing your teeth, as well as visiting your dentist regularly help a lot. If you want minimal dental procedures performed in your mouth, make sure that you are doing your part in keeping it in good shape.

As aforementioned, dental health does not stop in the mouth because there is a body-mouth connection that you need to remember, which is why dentists can’t stress it enough when they say that you have to prioritise your dental health, too, among other things.